Tanzania photo show stunning if derivative

Armed with point-and-shoot film cameras, Jamara Knight took a trip to Northern Tanzania. During his two-month stay, he worked with children orphaned by HIV/AIDS, giving them cameras to document their lives. To complement the photos, the children wrote descriptions of their work and life experiences. The result is Watoto Wanapiga Picha, a touching documentary photo exhibit currently on display at Golden Belt.

The photos, filled with color and vivacity, depict a stunning lifestyle. In spite of the difficulty of these people's lives, the show conveys a pervasive image of positivity at odds with their impoverished Tanzanian locale.

These are not images of squalor, but portraits of hope. The context of the children's writing and the knowledge that the photographers are 12- to 15-year-olds with no photography training only enhances the power of these images.

But as admirable as Knight's work is, it certainly is not the first of its kind. Knight's work is the result of a Literacy Through Photography workshop he took at the Center for Documentary Studies. LTP, pioneered by Wendy Ewald in Appalachia decades ago, is one of many programs designed to enable a sense of self-expression in children, the most famous being Zana Briski's Kids with Cameras featured in the 2004 documentary Born Into Brothels.

But the lack of originality does not distract from the quality of the show. These are powerful documentary images, made more powerful by the fact that children took them.

Watoto Wanapiga Picha is on display though April 15 in Building 3, Room 100 of Golden Belt. Visit goldenbeltarts.com for more information.

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